Glaciers and Volcanoes
by Snow Eaglewings
Summary: In their early years of life, Katara and Sokka are captured by the Fire Nation due to their 'high-ranking' among the Water Tribe. Raised alongside Zuko and Azula, how would the world have changed for the Avatar when everyone's against him? Zutara, Sokkla
1. Chapter 1: The Capture

_1o years ago_

"Sokka! Sokka, watch me!" Katara giggled, sitting on the snow-covered ground with her legs stretched out in front of her. She was trying to bend the snow, like Mama had showed her.

"Not now, Katara. Dad said-" Both children stopped as a peculiar thing started to fall from the sky, something they'd never seen before: Black Snow.

Men from the village were running toward the wall of ice that protected them, ready for battle. Sokka grabbed his boomerang, looking around for his father.

"Katara! Sokka!" Hakoda was yelling, trying to get his children's attention. "Go find your mother! Stay with her, and don't come out until I come get you."

Katara immediately ran to find her mother, but Sokka, ever the curious six-year-old, followed his father to see what was going on. There were men that Sokka had never seen before, scary men dressing in black and red that shot fire from their hands. When one came at him he panicked, throwing his boomerang at him in an attempt to protect himself. But it sailed wide, missing the soldier by over a foot.

The man chuckled. "You stupid Water Tribe brat. Did you really think-" A loud _CLANG _was heard as the boomerang came back around, bouncing off the back of the soldier's head and sending him to the ground. Sokka jumped up, catching the boomerang with triumph written in his big blue eyes.

"Yeah! That's what you get for messing with me! My Dad's the strongest, bestest man in the Southern Water Tribe, and he taught me everything he knows!" Sokka said, stomping his little fit in the direction of the fallen soldier.

"And just who is your father, Little Warrior?" A cold, calculating voice said from behind him. Sokka whirled, squinting in the sunlight to see a very scary looking man staring down at him. He was tall, most of his face obscured by a helmet that winged out from his face like the red wings of a Phoenix. His hands were on his hips, the badge attached to the collar of his armor declaring him to be a General of some kind.

"My Dad is Hakoda, the fiercest, bravest warrior there ever was!" Sokka proclaimed, oblivious to the dangerous situation. "I'm going to be just like him!"  
The General chuckled. "Oh no, Little Warrior." He said, his voice deceptively calm. "You won't be.

Katara ran for her mother, going as fast as her four-year-old legs could carry her as she dodged snow banks, fighting men, and large igloos that had never seemed in the way before, but were now providing a serious obstacle. Just as she was about to push the curtain aside and run into her igloo, her hood was caught and she was yanked backwards by a hand, covered in a red glove.

"And just where do you think you're going?" A voice said. Looking over her shoulder, Katara's eyes widened as she took in the man above her.

"Home." She whispered, her voice a slight squeak that was barely audible with all the noise that was being caused by the fighting. The man who had a hold of her smirked, drawing her farther away from her safety.

"Are you? So you live here than? With the Chief's family?" He asked. She nodded, sensing the danger a little too late. She opened her mouth to yell, but before she could a strong, unforgiving hand was placed over her mouth.

"Don't worry, Girl. The Fire Nation will take _good _care of you."


	2. Chapter 2: Introductions

Episode 1: The Boy In The Iceberg

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story. I am simply using them for my own twisted imagination. All credit and work goes to Michael and Bryan of _Avatar: The Last Airbender._

_Flashback: Two Years Ago_

_A twelve-year-old Katara races down the Palace corridors, her red robes fisted in her hands and her dark brown hair flowing out behind her. She hoped Azula wouldn't be able to find her here, in the Lower Levels. Very rarely did anyone go down here- it was the prefect hiding place. And she often came down here when she wanted to be alone. She rounded a corner…_

"_GOTCHA!" Sokka's voice rang out as he grabbed her around the waist, pulling her into the air and holding her squirming body still._

"_No fair! You and Azula cornered me!" Katara whined, struggling against her brother's strong grip. "And where's Zuko, anyway? He's supposed to be on my team." She pouted, her lower lip jutting out._

"_He's sitting in on one of Father's War Councils. He decided he was old enough and that he should be allowed to." Azula said, coming around the corner. Not a single hair on her head was out of place, unlike Katara, who slightly resembled a boar-q-pine._

"_But that's so boring. Why would he-" But Sokka was caught off by a servant running down the hall toward them, looking disheveled and panicked._

"_Your Highness…Princess Azula…" He wheezed. "Your father, Fire Lord Ozai, requests your presence. There has been an incident in the War Council." He looked at all the children, taking them in. "It's about Prince Zuko. General Iroh also requires your presence, Lady Katara and Lord Sokka."_

Present: Aboard a Fire Nation Ship, somewhere in the South Sea

"Uncle!" Katara looked up from the pi sho game she was currently engaged in, just in time to see Zuko storm into the room, his face a mask of rage. "Uncle, have you heard-!"

"Nephew, it's not respectful to ignore the women when you walk into a room. You should acknowledge them as equals before you speak." Iroh said calmly, leaning back in his chair. Zuko looked confused.

"It's just Katara, Uncle. Anyway…" He trailed off at his uncle's disapproving look. "What?"

"Katara is a young woman now. You should respect her as you would any other woman." Uncle Iroh said wisely.

"Really, Uncle Iroh, it's not necessary-" Katara began, but Iroh shook his head. Sighing, Katara leaned back in her chair, slipping her hands into the sleeves of her red robe as she settled in for a long wait. Like most of Zuko's lessons on manners, this one lasted about thirty minutes- Zuko was a slow learner.

To be quite honest, Katara wasn't sure when she had really started being considered a young woman. Had it been on her fourteenth birthday two months ago, or before then? Maybe it hadn't really been a specific date, but more when she'd started acting like a woman instead of a girl. She certainly hadn't dressed like a little girl in ages- her hair was up in a traditional top-knot with the excess tresses falling down her back in chocolate brown waves, her red silk robe the perfect example of Fire Nation fashion despite the fact that she hadn't been anywhere near the Fire Nation Capital in well over a year. Azula had been writing her letters though, as had Sokka, so she knew exactly what had been going on since she'd left with Zuko two years ago.

"You know what? This isn't even worth it." Zuko's voice brought her back to the present, her eyes flying to his face as he stormed out of the room. Katara turned to Iroh, raising an eyebrow. He chuckled.

"Don't worry about it, My Child. He'll calm down soon enough."

Azula lay on her back in one of the private gardens, staring up at the branches of a huge Oak tree. The leaves were turning wonderful shades of gold and red and orange- autumn was well under way in the Fire Nation.

Currently she was thinking of Katara. Azula had not seen her childhood friend in almost a year and a half, after she had come to visit seven months after Zuko had originally been banished. It pained her to be away from Katara- they'd been together for as long as she could remember, and the fact that she had chosen to go with Zuko instead of stay with her really hurt.

But she wrote letters almost every week, telling Katara all of the palace gossip and what was going in in the city. Recently one of the nobles had run off with a peasant from the Earth Kingdom, and Azula was looking forward to Katara's response when she got the letter.

"Azula!" She was yanked from her thoughts by none other than Sokka, his booming voice and easy-going nature enough to immediately set her on edge. Things had been tense between them recently, for reasons unknown. As far as she could tell, it was nothing she had done- he had simply decided to grow awkward one day.

She rolled over onto her stomach, resting her chin on her stacked hands. "Hi Sokka."

"Lady Li and Lady Lo sent me to find you. They said you didn't come to your lessons today." He said, rocking back and forth on his heels. He stood in front of her in something Zuko would have worn, had he still been here and still been Crown Prince. Now, it was more likely that Azula would become Fire Lord when the time came, though recently Fire Lord Ozai had been taking a rather strong interest in the young Warrior. The only thing that bothered Azula about that was that her father never called Sokka by his name; he was always 'The Water Tribesman'. Sokka clearly had Water Tribe heritage, but he was anything but a Water Tribesman. The boy knew nothing about life in either of the Poles.

Though, Azula supposed that it didn't help that Sokka refused to take of the necklace he'd had since he was little, made of Otter Penguin teeth. It was the only thing-besides his overall coloring-that would tip someone off to the fact that he was born in the Southern Water Tribe. He seemed to be completely Fire Nation, from his top knot to his red-and-gold shoes.

"I was in a meeting with Father. Apparently there have been some revolts in our Earth Kingdom territories. He wants us to go and dispel the revolution." Azula said, rolling to her feet and turning to walk down the length of the garden. He trailed behind, gazing at the pond as he lagged behind her.

"Why us?" He asked finally, watching as a turtle duck waddled onto the bank and quacked at him. He smiled slightly.

Azula shrugged. "I didn't question him, Sokka. Apparently there's a leader of this little 'rebellion' they've devised, one who calls themselves 'The Blind Bandit'. They're rumored to be one of the most powerful Earth Benders ever to live, so we'll have to be a little more cautious than usual. But it's nothing we can't handle I'm sure." They walked a few minutes more as Sokka thought it over, a strange expression on his face.

"Alright." He said finally. "When do we leave?"

She turned to look at him. "Tomorrow."


	3. Chapter 3: The Avatar Returns

_I just wanted to start off saying that I really like all the reviews I'm getting for this. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside to know my work is appreciated. As for some of the questions you guys had…well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? *Evil Laughter*_

Episode Two: The Avatar Returns

They were headed on a course that would lead them straight into the heart of the South Pole capital- or what was left of it, anyway. The South Pole had been nothing more than a cluster of huts with some women and children for quite some time, Zuko had said. For whatever reason, Katara was feeling rather nervous about visiting the Pole, and she could not understand why.

For one thing, Katara did not know if she came from the North or South pole- she assumed the South, as Fire Nation soldiers had never been able to breach the grand walls of the North Pole. The one time she had ever asked Sokka for the information, he had started screaming at her before locking himself in his room and refusing to talk to her for the rest of the day. It had not made much sense to her at the time, and now, almost six years later; it still did not make much sense.

Maybe it was because she didn't remember anything about her life before the Fire Nation, before Iroh, before Zuko and Azula. She had no memories of the cold, or the snow, or any family she might have had; however, she knew Sokka did. In her early memories she could recall Sokka sitting straight up in bed, crying in the middle of the night over something he had dreamed about just moments before- dreams that had really been memories of the life they'd had before, but something Katara never seemed to have any access to. It didn't bother her, not really. It just made her sad to see her brother suffer so.

As they steadily drew closer to the huge mound of ice that was the South Pole, Katara found that the cold weather seemed to comfort her, while it made the rest of the people aboard the ship rather uncomfortable. She supposed it was because they were used to warmer weather, though she thought she was, too. Many questions were cropping up for Katara at the moment, and she didn't really have answers to any of them.

When one of the crew spotted land, Katara went below deck to get ready. She would disembark with Zuko, helping him to search for the Avatar in the only village anywhere near here. A strange beam of light had shot into the sky the day before, and Zuko had been positive it was the Avatar that had caused it. This was the first real evidence they had seen for themselves of the Avatar's existence, so Katara was feeling rather confident about it.

She gathered all of her hair into a topknot, leaving only a few curly strands down to frame her face, much like Azula's favorite hairstyle. She struggled slightly with the straps of her armor, but was able to get it on with little trouble as she slipped the heavy gold and bronze armor over her chest and shoulders.

"Ready to go?" Zuko asked, leaning his shoulder against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest. He was in full battle armor, his hair tied up and his expression hard. He'd taken to wearing his hair down every now and then, as they'd been aboard the ship almost two years and they were not particularly comfortable all the time when they were at sea for weeks on end. She noticed now, however, that he'd gone back to being the hard, short-tempered Zuko that she knew a little too well for comfort.  
"Almost." She murmured, pulling her shoes on and tying the long laces. As she stood, the boat tipped sharply to the left and she lost her balance, her arms swinging wildly as she tried to catch herself before she connected with the hard, metal floor. A split second before she hit the ground she shut her eyes, expecting a painful impact, but instead felt warm, strong arms band tight around her.

A rough, calloused hand brushed along her cheekbone, removing the stray strands of hair from her eyelashes. Slowly, she opened her eyes to see Zuko, his face inches from hers, his gold eyes alight with something she couldn't quite make sense of.

Her eyes, two crystal-clear pools of blue, were by far the most tell-tale sign of what she was feeling. Her face, usually so calm and serene, could not hide what her eyes betrayed. Zuko had gotten very good at reading those eyes. Now, they told him that she was surprised, stunned, and…was that a hint of heat in her gaze? He swallowed hard, righting her on her feet and taking a step back. He cleared his throat.

"We should go. We penetrated the ice ten minutes ago- they're waiting for us on deck." He turned on his heel and walked to the door, though he did wait for her to slip the small, red-and-gold Fire Nation symbol over the dark band that held her topknot and walk to meet him at the door. With a resounding _BANG _the door shut behind them, a hint of finality in its noise.

"Where are you hiding him?" Zuko's sharp, angry voice carried easily in the deadly silence of the village. He stood in front of a middle-aged woman, clutching the hand of an elderly woman who appeared to be the one in charge. Both wore heavy blue coats, the fur surrounding their bodies like snow. Even from her spot almost one hundred paces back, near the base of the ramp that leads to the ship, Katara could catch the glint of the sun as it shines off the pretty blue necklace that hung from the younger woman's neck.

Zuko, suddenly impatient for an answer, yanked the older woman out of the ranks of blue and held her by the hood of her parka, shaking her in the direction of the scared villagers.

"He's probably about as old as her, master of the elements?" He said, shoving her back toward the woman who Katara guessed is her daughter. They cowered in fear, though nothing compared to the terror-filled shrieks that fill the air when Zuko let out one hard, feral blast of angry red fire over their heads.

"Where is he?!" Katara took a few steps forward, knowing Zuko was mere seconds from one of his famous melt-downs. And in a village made completely of ice and snow, they would quickly have a problem. Noticing the movement, the daughter's eyes shifted from Zuko to Katara for a split second, before drifting back on their own accord. With a gasp, she placed a hand over her mouth.

"Katara?" She whispered. Then, when Katara's head snapped up at the sound, she called louder. "Katara!"

Startled, Zuko turned to look at her, his face an impassive mask as he debated on what to do. Finally, he motioned her forward.

With hesitant, soft steps that crunched in the snow, Katara made her way forward to stand even with Zuko. He placed a hand on her shoulder, keeping her anchored to his side as if he feared she would suddenly disappear. Or, Katara realized, that he would lose her.

With no warning a gust of wind knocked them to their knees¸ sinking a good inch into the snow. Katara's hood flew back, revealing her water tribe features, and both the younger and older woman looked at her with utter, complete shock on their faces.

"Looking for me?" A young boy stood before them, no older than twelve, though he was dressed rather peculiarly in orange and yellow. He carried a long, wooden staff and appeared to have come from nowhere.

Zuko was the first to his feet. "_You're _the avatar?" A fireball appeared in his outstretched palm, glowing bright and dangerous. "I have spent years preparing for this encounter. I've been training, meditating." An angry growl was ripped from his throat. "You're just a child!"

Calmly, and with a certain innocence, the boy said: "Well, you're just a teenager."

This was the last straw. With an angry yell Zuko rushed forward, a sudden and short series of fireballs being produced at a rapid rate from his outstretched fingers. Katara stood still, one hand on her sword and the other slowly reaching for the pouch of water she kept at her waist. Ladies Li and Lo had been absolutely thrilled to learn that she was a Waterbender, and so she'd trained alongside Azula and Zuko while they learned Firebending. Sokka had been left out, unable to bend any of the elements.

Suddenly, the commotion stopped. Katara's eyes followed the boy's every move as he slowly stood straight, no longer defending himself from Zuko's attack.

"If I go with you, do you promise to leave this village of innocent people alone?" He asked. An anguished cry was heard from the younger woman.

"No, Aang, don't-" He turned to look at her over his shoulder, a strange smile on his face.

"It'll be okay, Kya. Don't worry." He turned back to Zuko. "Will you?"

Zuko considered for only a brief moment before he jerked his head in silent agreement. Two soldiers rushed forward, shackling Aang's ankles and wrists together so that he couldn't move in his own defense. Zuko strode toward the ship, the metal toes of his shoes echoing against the steel of the ramp. Katara followed silently, ever present behind his left shoulder. Just as he was about to disappear into his ship, Zuko turned back to look at his second-in-command.

"Set a course for the Fire Nation capital. I'm going home."


	4. Chapter 4: Dinner with Zhao

Episode Three: The Southern Air Temple

"I'm hungry."

"Suck it up."

"We've been awake for _hours, _Azula!"

"And we will continue to stay awake until we've devised a suitable battle plan!"

Sokka grunted, throwing himself into a chair and dangling a leg over the armrest. They'd been at sea for three days now, and Sokka had received a grand total of four hours of sleep before being rudely awakened by Azula. She'd then proceeded to keep him awake, locked in the war room of the ship as she tried to come up with the best way to tackle this new rebellion in the Earth Kingdom.

It wasn't that he didn't enjoy spending time with Azula; she just made it so difficult when she was in a mood like this. Not only that, but she'd invited her two little friends along as well, one of which was so boring he was afraid he'd fall asleep while she was talking, and the other much too enthusiastic for his own good. He'd avoided them both as much as possible, though the one in pink even more so- she had a very strong, very disturbing crush on him and continuously tried to ambush him in deserted hallways.

"Ty Lee, if we got you into the Blind Bandit's center of communications, would you be able to immobilize him?" The one in pink looked up. So that was her name.

"I'm sure I could. He's an earthbender, right?" She was currently walking on her hands across the wide table, her hair dragging along behind her. Sokka picked up his cup, removing it before she either knocked it over or got her hair in it.

"As far as we know. He's been recruiting other earthbenders to his cause, as well as most of the citizens of the city. We need to get rid of the Blind Bandit as soon as possible and dispose of this little revolution they've devised. Perhaps we'll even claim Ba Sing Se as we do so." Azula sounded rather hopeful, and so sure that they would manage to take the city. Sokka, however, wasn't so sure.

He couldn't describe it, but he had this feeling that they were missing something rather significant about this blind bandit character. Whatever it was, he was sure it could be their downfall if they weren't careful.  
"Don't get too cocky, Azula." He cautioned, bringing all the attention to himself. "We don't want to underestimate this opponent of ours. For all we know, this 'Blind Bandit' could be much stronger than we anticipate. I think we should go into this cautiously, and intelligently."

A smile tugged at the edges of her mouth as she sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. The golden edging of her armor glinted in the lantern light, much like Sokka's own. Both were dressed in the armor of Royalty, despite Sokka's lack of a relationship with the Fire Lord. He'd been handed the bundle before they'd left, the servant saying it was directly from Fire Lord Ozai. Sokka had been honored to accept the armor, and had told Azula so, but the remainder of what had been in the bundle he kept for himself.

He would let her know soon enough, he was sure. But for now, he figured it was a better idea to keep it a secret from everyone. He didn't want to create a target out of himself.

"Than what do you suggest, Prince Sokka?" Azula asked, looking at him expectantly. Sokka grinned, and began to describe just what he had in mind for this 'Blind Bandit'. He'd never see it coming.

One of the soldiers knocked on the door before coming into the room, his face partially covered by his helmet. "Princess Azula, Prince Sokka, we have reached port for the night so that we may re-stock and refuel. An admiral who also happens to be in port wishes to invite you to dinner." He stood with his hands behind his back, and despite the rigid line of his back Sokka could tell he was nervous.

"Who is this general?" Mai asked, sounding bored. She twirled one of her knives absently, making Sokka uncomfortable.

"Admiral Zhao, My Lady."

Zuko had locked himself in his room, refusing to see anyone. Katara couldn't really blame him- he _had _managed to lose the Avatar before they'd even gotten out of Water Tribe territory, and now were forced to go to the nearest port to make repairs. The nearest port, of course, being one of Zhao's.

Zuko did not like Zhao. Neither did Katara, for that matter. He made her extremely uncomfortable, and whenever she left his presence she felt the need to wash. She'd not seen him for over two years, and was not looking forward to seeing him again. Of course, there was no guarantee he was in port right now, but what were the chances that he wasn't? With their luck, he'd invite them to dinner.

There was a knock on her door. "Lady Katara?" It was one of the soldiers. She looked up from the book she was reading, motioning for him to speak. "General Iroh asks that you come above, Lady Katara. You've been invited to dinner by one of the Admirals in port." She nodded.

"Thank you, Lee. Please tell him that I will be up in a few minutes." She said, breathing a small sigh of relief. The last she'd heard, Zhao had still been a general. Perhaps it was not him that had invited them to dinner.

She slipped out of her day robe and instead pulled the heavy Fire Nation armor over her head. Even though she was not considered royalty, she and Azula had the same armor. Fire Lord Ozai had given it to her before she'd left, saying that it might come in handy 'should anyone try to take her power from her'. She'd been unsure of what he'd meant, but accepted the armor all the same.

Unlike Azula, her top-knot ornament was not a three-pronged flame, but rather a two-pronged one in deep gold. The three-pronged flame signified that she was a member of the royal family, while the two-pronged simply meant she was the daughter of some higher lord or general. Zuko's head-piece had been three-pronged before he left, as he'd not received the top-knot ornament of the crown prince.

She'd only just finished lacing her boots when she heard someone knock on her door again. Thinking it was Iroh, she called out: "Come in!" as she searched for the belt that had somehow managed to disappear somewhere in her chest of clothing.

She heard the door open and close, but whoever had just entered her room did not speak. She gave a small smile of triumph as she found the belt buried beneath one of her robes, and tied it about her waist as she turned to look at who had entered her room.

To her surprise, it was Zuko. "Zuko!" She exclaimed, walking over to him. "Is something wrong?"

He'd been acting strange for weeks now, but this was an extreme. He stood looking at her with a mixture of pain, hesitation, anger, and was that…embarrassment? "Zuko, do tell me what's the matter."

He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck, not looking at her as he clenched his jaw. "Zhao's invited us to dinner." He muttered. Ah. That would explain the anger, but what about the other emotions?

Her blue eyes studied him, only picking up on things that someone would see if they'd known him his entire life. He was hiding something else. "That's not everything." She said softly, hand on her hip. "If this is about Zhao's…taking a liking to me, you've nothing to worry about-"

He surprised her by grabbing her about the waist and tugging her to his chest, an intense look in his eyes as he looked down at her. There was still a hint of embarrassment, but the hesitation and pain were gone. They'd been replaced with determination.

"What-" He silenced her with a kiss.

Her eyes widened before shutting abruptly, and she allowed herself to become lost in the feeling of Zuko. Usually she was quiet, reserved- years in the palace had taught her to be that way, while it had made both Zuko and Azula into bundles of barely-contained animosity and short tempers. Now, however, she was just as passionate as Zuko as his mouth slanted over hers.

He tugged at her hair, loosening it from its binds and running his fingers through it almost reverently. She sighed, her lips parting, and then gasped when she felt the brush of his tongue on the inside of her bottom lip. He smiled slightly, catching her bottom lip between his teeth and yanking on it gently. She was thoroughly inexperienced in this department, but found it did not make much of a difference. She worked on instinct alone as she molded her body to his, hearing the slightly grating sound of metal-on-metal as their armor caught, but she didn't care. Neither, it seemed, did Zuko as he lifted her off her feet.

It was entirely wonderful experience, kissing Zuko. He was strong, but so gentle as he stroked the skin at the back of her neck. She shivered, goose bumps erupting all over her body as she cupped his cheeks in her hands. She brushed her thumbnail along the edge of his scar, and he moaned ever so slightly.

She did not hear the door open, but they jumped apart when a throat cleared very loudly from that direction. A blush escaped to her cheeks when she saw that it was Iroh, and she looked at the ground.

Her lips felt swollen, the pressure of his lips a constant memory against them. "Zhao is waiting." Iroh said a grin in his voice as he looked between the two teenagers. Zuko tried not to let either know that the interruption had bothered him, nor how embarrassed he was.

"Thank you, Uncle." Both men waited for Katara to fix her hair before they left the room.

Katara had barely stepped foot into the dining room before she was practically bowled over by a small, pink ball of energy. "Ty Lee? What-" Her eyes widened as she saw who was standing just behind her childhood friend.

"Sokka! Azula!" She untangled herself from the tiny girl before wrapping herself up in her brother, pulling Azula into the mix as well. She didn't care that everyone aboard Zhao's ship were currently witnessing this; this was her family, and she was going to enjoy their company while she could.

"If everyone would please take their seats." Zhao said, cutting their joyous reunion short. Katara composed herself and took her seat next to Zuko, who was at Iroh's left. Zhao, of course, sat in the middle of the table with Azula to his right, Iroh to his left. Sokka was on the other side of Azula, followed by Mai and Ty Lee. The set-up was obvious- even though Zuko was technically heir, he was still the banished prince. His sister was given the honor of sitting to the right of the host, Iroh on the left as an important General and brother of the Fire Lord.

Katara placed a comforting hand on Zuko's knee under the table, struggling hard to keep a blush at bay that threatened to rise from touching him this way. She never would have reacted this way before, but after what had happened in her room not a half hour ago…

He looked over at her, flashing a smile of gratitude from her action. He was still angry, she could tell, but he was doing his best not to let it get to him. Discreetly, he placed his hand over hers.

Dinner was tense. Zhao continuously tried to get a rise out of Zuko, who dubiously ignored him while making conversation with Katara. She knew he wanted to talk to Azula and Sokka, to grill them on why they were here and what had been happening in the Fire Nation recently, but it was impossible with the way the table was set up.

"Prince Zuko, I was unaware that your father had allowed you to wear the Fire Nation uniform." Zhao was saying, his tone deceptively pleasant. Zuko's hand tightened painfully around Katara's. "But I suppose, like a child playing dress up, we will allow it to slide just this once, no?" He took a drink from his cup.

Zuko stood abruptly, his face a mask of anger as he went around his uncle to speak quietly in Zhao's ear. Katara could not here what he said, but knew it couldn't have been good. Placing her napkin on the table and hurrying to stand, Katara thanked Zhao for the meal before hurrying after Zuko, who had stormed down the center aisle with murder in his eyes. The door slammed shut behind them.

There was a silence. Ty Lee got up quietly from her seat and went around to sit beside Iroh in Zuko's old seat, immediately striking up a conversation to dispel the awkwardness that had just filled the room. Slowly, the soldiers below began to talk again as Azula and Sokka continued their conversation as if nothing had happened.

Only Mai, who sat their quietly studying Zhao out of the corner of her eye, noticed the triumphant look in his eyes and the cruel smile on his face as he watched the door that Zuko and Katara had disappeared out of.


End file.
